So I finished watching the niners game last night, and here are some of my random thoughts from watching the Lions so far. All comments and additional thoughts very welcome (help me understand what's going on, guys!). In no particular order (I did say random):

1. Young Sr seems to be doing his best impersonation of Suh in his second season. Seems to me he's bought into his own hype and decided he doesn't need to work hard at it much.

2. Suh seems to have realised the error of his ways last season and is getting back towards where his potential should see him.

3. What's up with Nick Fairley? He looked good vs the Rams, against the 49ers at halftime I thought maybe he didn't make the active roster because of injury. In the end it was only a shot of the D-Line on a bench on the sideline coming out of a commercial break that made me realise he was dressed for the game.

4. Please, please can a decent DB join this team and avoid getting hurt?

5. I was worried about how our secondary would be playing the first string. They've done better than I expected even with 3 out of 4 of the first string have been out (Houston, Delmas, Bentley). So who knows, if we get healthy at the right time of year ... ?

6. Matthew Stafford If He Stays Healthy seems to be trying his best to change his name to Matthew Stafford If He Gets His Head In The Game.

7. I still like Matthew Stafford Down Less Than A Score With Not Much Time Left, mind. The guy does seem pretty unflappable. I remember some of the failed comebacks in 2011 and thinking "dude, show a bit of passion, the game is on the line here". Then I read an interview with him saying how that doesn't help and his job is to stay calm. Now I like seeing "looks like he's contemplating whether to order the steak or the seafood" Stafford in the huddle late in the 4th quarter.

9. Corey Williams doesn't look the same guy as the last 2 seasons - is he on the downward slope?

10. Please sign SLH to a long term extension before this season skyrockets his asking price.

11. Cliff Avril you are a complete loser. WTF on the kneel down at the end of the 49ers game? Way to announce to the world "yes, these guys got into my head and beat me". Idiot.

12. Linebackers look better than last season - or is a change in scheme helping them?

13. Pettigrew still manages to put a lot more on the table than he takes off it, but boy does he take some stupid things off it at times. Winner of the "most frustrating Lion" award?

14. Scheffler - hmm, not so impressed with him.

15. Burleson - hmm, not so impressed with him at the minute.

16. Which brings me on to: please receivers other than CJ, get a bit of seperation every now and again?

17. Two games down and our worst ST blunder was Logan running backwards and a hold vs the Rams. That's a massive improvement from last season. To be fair, you could have put my 4 year old daughter on the field and seen a massive improvement (she may be small, but she's aggressive and is intelligent enough to understand the idea of not allowing the returner to get outside), but still I'll take it.

18. I thought 8-8 and a consolidating year before the season began. Now I'm hopeful of 9-7 or 10-6 and sneaking into the playoffs. We look about the team I expected, but GB and the Bears don't look as good as I expected (I still think the Vikings are sneaky good, and better than most expect, but I factored that into the 8-8 prediction).

That'll do for now. Thanks to anyone who took the time to read my ramblings!

September 18th, 2012, 5:41 am

thelomasbrowns

Player of the Year - Defense

Joined: August 24th, 2010, 9:54 pmPosts: 2824

Re: Random thoughts after week 2

I thought Broyles would've been perfect for the short passing game we were trying to work in that game. Really puzzles me why he didn't play (even though he was active).

_________________"Good teams don't worry about a whole lot of stuff. They travel, they play, they win. And it doesn't matter where they go, what the time block is, all those kinds of things. They never seem to bother teams that play well, and we want to be one of those teams." -Jim Caldwell

September 18th, 2012, 9:28 am

49ers

Varsity Captain

Joined: October 12th, 2011, 9:00 amPosts: 289Location: Vermont

Re: Random thoughts after week 2

I didn't have any thoughts on the Lions before this post, but after reading what you wrote, I think you pretty much nailed it. Nice write-up!

12. Linebackers look better than last season - or is a change in scheme helping them?

Lots of good observations but wanted to echo this particular observation. I haven't noticed a scheme change but I have noticed that Justin Durant has played very well so far this year. He was solid vs. SF but was an absolute beast against St. Louis. I hope he can stay healthy this year--injuries have always been an issue for him but he's a good player.

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September 18th, 2012, 9:49 am

TheRealWags

Modmin Dude

Joined: December 31st, 2004, 9:55 amPosts: 12488

Re: Random thoughts after week 2

mwill2 wrote:

UK Lion wrote:

12. Linebackers look better than last season - or is a change in scheme helping them?

Lots of good observations but wanted to echo this particular observation. I haven't noticed a scheme change but I have noticed that Justin Durant has played very well so far this year. He was solid vs. SF but was an absolute beast against St. Louis. I hope he can stay healthy this year--injuries have always been an issue for him but he's a good player.

Vikings aren't sneaky good, haven't played anyone good yet. I am not buying them yet.

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September 18th, 2012, 11:22 am

Killwill25

Rookie Player of the Year

Joined: March 5th, 2009, 8:42 pmPosts: 2411Location: Brooklyn, NY

Re: Random thoughts after week 2

Lions2SB2 wrote:

Vikings aren't sneaky good, haven't played anyone good yet. I am not buying them yet.

true, i'm not buying them yet either but Ponder has been playing better than I thought. We'll see how he does vs SF though

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September 18th, 2012, 2:02 pm

TheRealWags

Modmin Dude

Joined: December 31st, 2004, 9:55 amPosts: 12488

Re: Random thoughts after week 2

Killwill25 wrote:

Lions2SB2 wrote:

Vikings aren't sneaky good, haven't played anyone good yet. I am not buying them yet.

true, i'm not buying them yet either but Ponder has been playing better than I thought. We'll see how he does vs SF though

Heh, he's the highest rated QB in the division right now:

Quote:

Christian PonderPasser Rating: 114.6QBR: 45.9Action plays: 46 of 65Comment: QBR was a little less kind to Ponder than passer rating. One again Ponder was efficient, completing 77 percent of his passes against the Indianapolis Colts and avoiding an interception. But the Vikings haven't been explosive with Ponder behind center, and on Sunday they didn't have a single play go for more than 20 yards.

Aaron RodgersPasser Rating: 85.3QBR: 29.3Action plays: 40 of 66Comment: Rodgers had a winning effort against the Chicago Bears but was sacked five times, threw an interception and averaged a relatively low 6.8 yards per attempt. His longest pass in the air was a 26-yard touchdown strike to receiver Donald Driver, and overall his 29.3 QBR was the lowest in a Packers victory since 2008.

Jay CutlerPasser Rating: 28.2QBR: 4.7Action plays: 41 of 57Comment: Cutler has finished a game only one other time in his NFL career with a passer rating lower than 28.2. He threw four interceptions, took seven sacks and completed 40.7 percent of his passes. Frankly, it was the kind of game the Bears thought he had put behind him.

Matthew StaffordPasser Rating: 78.9QBR: 31.9Action plays: 40 of 60Comment: Like Rodgers in Week 1, Stafford couldn't get downfield against the 49ers' zone defense. He attempted only six passes longer than 10 yards in the air and completed two. Stafford's first-quarter interception set up a 49ers touchdown; he said afterwards he tried to pull the ball back at the last moment and couldn't, causing it to flutter.

Vikings aren't sneaky good, haven't played anyone good yet. I am not buying them yet.

true, i'm not buying them yet either but Ponder has been playing better than I thought. We'll see how he does vs SF though

They lost to the Colts

Colts almost blew it.

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September 19th, 2012, 10:41 am

thelomasbrowns

Player of the Year - Defense

Joined: August 24th, 2010, 9:54 pmPosts: 2824

Re: Random thoughts after week 2

We always play the Vikings close, so I'll never take a win against them for granted. Currently they have nothing on the outside--that's what's holding their offense back.

_________________"Good teams don't worry about a whole lot of stuff. They travel, they play, they win. And it doesn't matter where they go, what the time block is, all those kinds of things. They never seem to bother teams that play well, and we want to be one of those teams." -Jim Caldwell

September 19th, 2012, 12:36 pm

regularjoe12

Off. Coordinator – Joe Lombardi

Joined: March 30th, 2006, 12:48 amPosts: 4180Location: Davison Mi

Re: Random thoughts after week 2

thelomasbrowns wrote:

We always play the Vikings close, so I'll never take a win against them for granted. Currently they have nothing on the outside--that's what's holding their offense back.

what do you mean "on the outside"? You cant mean WR as that percy harvin Kid is pretty darned good!

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September 19th, 2012, 12:51 pm

thelomasbrowns

Player of the Year - Defense

Joined: August 24th, 2010, 9:54 pmPosts: 2824

Re: Random thoughts after week 2

regularjoe12 wrote:

thelomasbrowns wrote:

We always play the Vikings close, so I'll never take a win against them for granted. Currently they have nothing on the outside--that's what's holding their offense back.

what do you mean "on the outside"? You cant mean WR as that percy harvin Kid is pretty darned good!

Yeah, he's awesome, but he plays more in the slot and at halfback. He's like the good Stefan Logan.

_________________"Good teams don't worry about a whole lot of stuff. They travel, they play, they win. And it doesn't matter where they go, what the time block is, all those kinds of things. They never seem to bother teams that play well, and we want to be one of those teams." -Jim Caldwell